Crowdsourced content sharing

ABSTRACT

In non-limiting examples of the present disclosure, systems, methods and devices for recommending content are presented. An electronic communication between a plurality of members of a common entity may be received. A link to web content in the electronic communication may be identified. A number of instances that the link has been electronically shared with members of the common entity may be determined. A determination may be made as to whether a content propagation threshold has been exceeded based on electronic sharing of the link amongst members of the common entity. The link may be provided for propagation upon determining that the content propagation threshold has been exceeded.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/785,320, filed Feb. 7, 2020, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,915,865, which is acontinuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 15/631,631, filed Jun. 23,2017, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,565,559, which are hereby incorporated byreference in their entirety herein.

BACKGROUND

Electronic links to online content are distributed via many forms ofelectronic communication, such as email and instant messagingapplications. For example, a manager in an organization may send a linkassociated with useful content to five members of an organizationalteam, and one or more of those five team members may forward the link toadditional organizational members that they believe might be interestedin the content. Although the link may become widely distributedthroughout the organization, it is likely that some organizationalmembers that would have found the link content to be useful orinteresting may not receive that information via member-to-membercommunication.

It is with respect to this general technical environment that aspects ofthe present technology disclosed herein have been contemplated.Furthermore, although a general environment has been discussed, itshould be understood that the examples described herein should not belimited to the general environment identified in the background.

SUMMARY

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription section. This summary is not intended to identify keyfeatures or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is itintended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimedsubject matter. Additional aspects, features, and/or advantages ofexamples will be set forth in part in the description which follows and,in part, will be apparent from the description or may be learned bypractice of the disclosure.

Non-limiting examples of the present disclosure describe systems,methods, and devices for recommending content associated with a sharedlink to one or more members of an entity. According to examples,electronic communications and/or signals associated with electroniccommunications to and/or from associated entity members may be receivedand a determination may be made as to whether the electroniccommunications include a link to web content. In some examples adetermination may be made as to a number of instances that a link to webcontent has been shared amongst entity members, or associated groups ofentity members. According to some examples, associated groups of entitymembers may be identified based on a communication value determined forpairs of entity members. A determination may be made as to whether acontent propagation threshold has been exceeded based on electronicsharing of a link amongst entity members. For example, a determinationmay be made as to whether content accessible by a link meets an approveddissemination list based on analysis of one or more categorical types ofcontent accessible by the link as it relates to categorical types ofcontent that are allowable for dissemination according to an inclusionlist and/or one or more filters. Upon determining that the contentpropagation threshold has been exceeded, a link and/or contentassociated with a link may be provided to one or more entity members.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Non-limiting and non-exhaustive examples are described with reference tothe following figures:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary environment forrecommending content associated with a shared link.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary environment foridentifying member distribution groups based on member communications.

FIG. 3 is an exemplary method for recommending content associated with ashared link.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary method for recommending content associated with ashared link based on identification of member distribution groups.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are simplified diagrams of a mobile computing device withwhich aspects of the disclosure may be practiced.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating example physical components of acomputing device with which aspects of the disclosure may be practiced.

FIG. 8 is a simplified block diagram of a distributed computing systemin which aspects of the present disclosure may be practiced.

FIG. 9 illustrates a tablet computing device for executing one or moreaspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various embodiments will be described in detail with reference to thedrawings, wherein like reference numerals represent like parts andassemblies throughout the several views. Reference to variousembodiments does not limit the scope of the claims attached hereto.Additionally, any examples set forth in this specification are notintended to be limiting and merely set forth some of the many possibleembodiments for the appended claims.

The various embodiments and examples described above are provided by wayof illustration only and should not be construed to limit the claimsattached hereto. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize variousmodifications and changes that may be made without following the exampleembodiments and applications illustrated and described herein, andwithout departing from the true spirit and scope of the claims.

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to systems, methods, anddevices for recommending content associated with a shared link.According to examples a set of users may be associated with one anothervia one or more relationships related to corresponding user profiles.For example, user profiles may be associated with one another based onsharing a common computer network, sharing a computer network tenancy,sharing an email domain, communicating with one another to a certaindegree (e.g., frequency, type of content shared), being members of thesame organization, etc. Each user profile may be associated with one ormore communication applications, such as email applications, calendarapplications, instant messaging applications, voice communicationapplications, audio communication applications, etc.

According to examples, one or more computing devices associated with themethods, systems, and devices described herein may receive electroniccommunications and/or one or more signals associated with electroniccommunications sent by members of a set (i.e., associated users). Inother examples, one or more computing devices associated with themethods, systems, and devices described herein may receive electroniccommunications and/or one or more signals associated with electroniccommunications received by members of a set. Upon receiving anelectronic communication sent or received by a member of the set, theelectronic communication, and/or one or more received signal associatedwith that communication, may be analyzed for the presence of a linkwithin that communication. As described herein a “link” may refer to ahyperlink, a deep link, and/or any other object that can be embedded inelectronic content and provide access to online content referenced bythe object.

When a link is identified in an electronic communication, that link maybe analyzed and/or accessed and a determination may be made as to thesource of the content that is accessible by the link, a categorical typeof content that is accessible by the link, and the media content typethat is accessible by the link. That information may be checked againstan inclusion list in order to determine if the link may be provided forpropagation by the methods, systems, and devices described herein.

The inclusion list may comprise a list of content types that areapproved for dissemination to associated members of group. For example,the inclusion list may include website domains and categorical contenttypes that are approved for dissemination to an entire entity, one ormore groups or sub-groups within an entity, and/or one or more usersassociated with an entity. As described herein, an entity, an entitygroup, and/or an entity sub-group may be formal hierarchical entitiesand groups within those entities (e.g., a company and teams within thatcompany), or non-formal entities and groups comprised of users that aredetermined to communicate with one another to a certain degree (e.g.,frequency of communication, type of communication, content ofcommunication, etc.).

The inclusion list may be automatically determined based on a profile ofan entity comprised of information associated with online content aboutthe entity (e.g., entity website content, social media communicationsassociated with the entity, news articles associated with the entity,etc.). The content on the approved list may additionally oralternatively be determined by user input, such as an entityadministrator designating content types and/or content sources that areapproved for members of an entity. Thus, content types and contentsource providers that are deemed to be of interest to members of anentity based on an entity profile may be included in the inclusion list.In additional examples, one or more content filters may be associatedwith the inclusion list such that inappropriate content may be blockedfrom dissemination and/or inclusion on the inclusion list. For example,website domains associated with malicious content, malware, explicitcontent, etc., may be blocked from inclusion by one or more contentfilters associated with the inclusion list.

In some examples, an entity, an entity group, and/or an entity sub-groupmay comprise a set of communicatively connected members of a commonentity. The set of communicatively connected members may be identifiedby analyzing a plurality of communication signals received from entitymembers and determining whether a plurality of entity members meet acommunication threshold for associating those members with one anotherbased on those communications and an associated communication valuedetermined for those users.

According to examples, a plurality of communication signals amongstapplication users may be received. For example, signals regardingcommunications between a plurality of users may be received fromapplications such as email applications, calendar and appointmentapplications, voice call applications, video call applications, textcommunication applications, etc. Thus, a first application user may sendan email to a second application user, a corresponding signal may bereceived, and a determination may be made based on that email, as wellas other communications between those users, regarding a communicationvalue to assign between those two users. According to examples, a valuemay be assigned to the received email based on one or more factorscomprising: the length of the email, the content of the email, thenumber of other users that the email has listed in its “to” field, thenumber of other users that the email has listed in its “cc” field, etc.Those values may be utilized in calculating the communication value toassign between the two users.

In another example, a first application user may send a calendar inviteto a second application user, a corresponding signal may be received,and a determination may be made based on that calendar invite, as wellas other communications between those users, regarding a communicationvalue to assign between those two users. According to examples, a valuemay be assigned to the received calendar invite based on one or morefactors associated with the calendar invite comprising: the length ofthe scheduled calendar appointment, the content of the calendar invite,the number of additional application users included on the calendarinvite, etc. Those values may be utilized in calculating thecommunication value to assign between the two users.

In additional examples, a first application user may call a secondapplication user via a voice call application, a corresponding signalmay be received, and a determination may be made based on that voicecall, as well as other communications between those users, regarding acommunication value to assign between those two users. According toexamples, a value may be assigned to the received voice call based onone or more factors associated with the voice call comprising: whetherthe call was answered, the length of the call, the number of otherapplication users that were invited to the call, etc. Those values maybe utilized in calculating the communication value to assign between thetwo users.

In other examples, a first application user may call a secondapplication user via a video call application, a corresponding signalmay be received, and a determination may be made based on that videocall, as well as other communications between those users, regarding acommunication value to assign between those two users. According toexamples, a value may be assigned to the received video call based onone or more factors associated with the video call comprising: whetherthe call was answered, the length of the call, the number of otherapplication users that were invited to the call, etc. Those values maybe utilized in calculating the communication value to assign between thetwo users.

In still other examples, a first application user may send a textcommunication via a text communication application (e.g., a chatapplication, an instant messaging application, a collaborative textcommunication application, etc.) to a second application user, acorresponding signal may be received, and a determination may be madebased on that text communication, as well as other communicationsbetween those users, regarding a communication value to assign betweenthose two users. According to examples, a value may be assigned to thereceived text communication based on one or more factors associated withthe text communication comprising: the type of text communication, thelength of the text communication, the content of the text communication,the number of other application users that were included on the textcommunication, the number of other application users that attended thetext communication, etc. Those values may be utilized in calculating thecommunication value to assign between the two users.

Each communication type (e.g., email communications, calendar andappointment communications, voice call communications, video callcommunications, text communications, etc.) may have a single valueassigned to it in calculating the communication value to assign betweento two users. For example, only a number of each communication typebetween two application users may be utilized in calculating thecommunication value between the two users (e.g., a number of emails sentand received between two users, a number of calendar and appointmentinvites sent and received between two users, a number of voice callsmade and answered and/or received between two users, a number of videocalls made and answered and/or received between two users, a number oftext communications and/or text communication application conversationsstarted between two users). According to other examples, each type ofcommunication between two users may receive a different value incalculating the communication value between the two users (e.g., anemail communication between two users may be provided a first value incalculating the communication value between the two users, and a voicecall communication between the two users may be provided a second valuein calculating the communication value between the two users).

In examples, a determination may be made as to a number of instancesthat the link has been electronically shared with members of a commonentity. That is, a determination may be made as to the number of timesthat the link has been sent to one member of an entity, sent from onemember of an entity, sent between members of an entity, a number ofmembers of an entity that have received the link, and/or number ofmembers of an entity that have accessed the link after it has been sentto them. In some examples, each instance that a link has beenelectronically shared with members of a common entity may be archived inone or more shared link repositories.

In additional examples, a determination may be made as to whether acontent propagation threshold has been exceeded based on electronicsharing of a link amongst members of a common entity. The contentpropagation threshold may be dependent on the size of a common entity,the size of one group or sub-group within a common entity, a categoricaltype of content that the link provides access to and a correspondinggroup of entity members that the categorical content type is likely ofinterest to, etc. For example, if the entity is a relatively largeentity (e.g., greater than 5000 members, greater than 10,000 members),and the content that the link provides access to is approved fordissemination to the entire entity, the propagation threshold may onlybe exceeded when the number of instances that the link has beenelectronically shared is similarly relatively large (e.g., 500 or 1,000sharing instances). Alternatively, if the link has been approved fordissemination to a relatively small group (e.g., 5 members, 20 members),the propagation threshold may only be exceeded when the number ofinstances that has been electronically shared is similarly relativelysmall (e.g., 1 member, 5 members). In some examples, the propagationthreshold may relate to a percentage of members that linked content hasbeen approved for dissemination to. For example, the propagationthreshold may only be exceeded when a link has been sent, received,and/or accessed by a certain percentage of an entity or entity group. Inadditional examples, the propagation threshold may relate to the type ofcontent that the link provides access to. For example, if a linkprovides access to content that is likely to be of interest to a largenumber or percentage of members, the propagation threshold may be lowerthan if it is likely to be of interest to a smaller number or percentageof members. In additional examples, the propagation threshold may relateto one or more hierarchical roles within a common entity that sharingmembers of a link have. For example, if a link is shared by a managerand/or member of an entity that is determined to be an influential orimportant member of an entity, then the metric for exceeding thepropagation threshold may be smaller than if the link was only shared byother members of the entity.

If a determination is made that a propagation threshold for the link hasbeen exceeded, the link may be provided for propagation. In someexamples, providing the link for propagation may comprise sending anautomated communication to one or more members that the link is approvedfor dissemination based on it matching approved content comprised withinan inclusion list. In additional examples, the link and/or reference tothe linked content may be archived for retrieval by one or moreapplications for propagation.

In some examples, a link and/or content associated with a link that hasbeen approved for dissemination to an entity or one or more groupswithin an entity may be marked or otherwise identified as beingavailable for propagation to one or more applications and/or one or moresubscribing users of one or more applications. In additional examples,marking or otherwise identifying a link and/or content associated with alink for propagation to one or more applications may comprise providingan indication of at least one categorical type of content that the linkprovides access to. In some examples, the link and/or a reference to thelinked content may be archived and marked or otherwise identified asbeing accessible to one or more applications when a request for contentthat is approved for dissemination to one or more entities or entitygroups is received by one or more applications.

In some examples, an API may be provided for accessing one or morestorage devices and retrieving associated content related to archivedlinks that have been approved for dissemination to one or more entitiesor entity groups. For example, an email application or a contentaggregation application may call into one or more devices associatedwith the storage of links or linked content that are approved fordissemination to one or more entities or entity groups, and a link tothat content or the content itself may be provided to the callingapplication, which may then disseminate the link and/or content tomembers that it has been approved for.

According to examples, each of the communication applications that auser's profile is associated with may comprise user-selectable privacycontrols that allow a user to indicate which, if any, communicationsignals to allow computing devices associated with the methods, systems,and devices described herein to collect. For example, an applicationuser may be prompted when she creates her application profile to selectwhich, if any, communications she would like to have monitored forsignal collection. Similarly, an application user may be prompted whenshe creates her application profile to select which communicationsignals she would like to have collected by the methods, systems, anddevices described herein. For example, a user may select an option tonot have any of her communication signals collected. Alternatively, auser may select an option to only have a number communications betweenherself and other application users to be counted (e.g., count thenumber of emails that the user sends to each of a plurality of otherapplication users, count the number of voice application calls that theuser initiates with each of a plurality of other application users,etc.). In still other examples, a user may select an option to have thelength and/or content of her communications collected or not collected.Each of the above-described privacy controls may similarly be selectablein a settings menu provided by one or more applications that a user'sapplication profile is associated with.

Turning specifically to the examples shown in the figures, FIG. 1 is aschematic diagram of an exemplary environment 100 for recommendingcontent associated with a shared link. Exemplary environment 100includes entity member sharing sub-environment 102, application contentprovider sub-environment 104, content application API 126, network andmember communication processing sub-environment 106, web content 134,and application dissemination sub-environment 110.

Entity member sharing sub-environment 102 includes computing devicesassociated with sharing of a link via one or more communicationapplications. For example, member computing device 112 may send anelectronic communication to one or more of member computing devices 114,116, and 118, via communication applications such as an emailapplication, an instant messaging communication, a collaborative workapplication, etc. An electronic communication sent/and or received byone or more of member computing devices 112-118 may be transferred andreceived, via network 128, by one or more computing devices and/orstorage services in member communication processing sub-environment 106,such as server computing device 130 and tenant content repository 132.

Server computing device 130 may receive electronic communications,and/or one or more corresponding communication signals, sent and/orreceived by one or more associated users. Server computing device 130may perform operations related to identifying a link to web content insuch electronic communications, and if a link is identified in anelectronic communication, determining whether the link and/or contentthat the link provides access to may be approved for furtherdissemination. For example, server computing device 130 may perform oneor more operations related to determining one or more types ofcategorical content that the link provides access to. For example,server computing device 130 may analyze a web domain associated with alink that has been identified in a received electronic communication,and determine whether that domain is on an approved list fordissemination to one or more users. In another example, server computingdevice 130 may access content that is accessible by the link anddetermine at least one categorical type of content that the contentrelates to. In some examples, server computing device may access contentthat is accessible by the link by accessing the World Wide Web as shownas web content 134, via network 128. Categorical types of content mayinclude high-level categories, such as: business, sports, science, etc.,as well as more specific categories associated hierarchically with suchhigh-level categories, such as: business>industry area>SaaS>stock marketprojections>market area; sports>winter sports>skiing>skiing gear>womenskiing gear>skiing gear item type; science>news article>science industry(e.g., biotech, computer science, etc.)>industry topic.

Upon determining a type of categorical content that is associated with alink, server computing device 130 may determine whether that type ofcontent is approved for dissemination to one or more users based on thatcontent type being included on an inclusion list. For example, one ormore types of content may be approved for dissemination to an entireentity and/or groups within an entity based on a determined entityprofile that is included in an inclusion list, based on one or more userand/or system administrator inputs related to approved content types,etc. In additional examples, server computing device may employ one ormore filters to identify link-associated content that may be maliciousin nature and/or otherwise inappropriate for dissemination, and blockthat information from being disseminated to users.

In some examples, when a received electronic communication is received,server computing device 130 may make a determination as to a number ofinstances that the link has been electronically shared with one or moreassociated members of an entity and/or an entity group that the methods,systems, and devices described herein provide contentdissemination/recommendation services for based on shared linkprocessing. For example, each time an electronic communication thatincludes a link is received, an indication regarding the number ofsharing instances for that link may be archived. In some examples, thenumber of sharing instances for a link may be archived on a storagedevice residing in server computing device 130. In other examples, thenumber of sharing instances for a link may be archived on a storagedevice that is separate from server computing device 130, such as tenantcontent repository 132. Thus, when a new electronic communication thatincludes a link is received, the archive may be queried in order todetermine whether that link was previously shared, and if so, in whatnumber of instances it was previously shared. The previous number ofshared instances for a link may be summed with the number of sharinginstances based on reception of the new electronic communication thatincludes the link in order to identify a total number of instances thatthe link has been electronically shared with members of a common entityor a group within the common entity.

In some examples, server computing device 130 may determine whether acontent propagation threshold has been exceeded based on a number ofinstances that a link has been electronically shared with members of acommon entity. In some examples, the propagation threshold may relate toa number of entity members that send the link. In other examples thepropagation threshold may relate to a number of entity members thatreceive and/or access the link. In still other examples, the propagationthreshold may relate to a number of entity members that send the link,and a number of entity members that receive and/or access the link. Thethreshold propagation threshold may be number-based such that a numberof entity members that sent, received, and/or accessed the link must beover a certain threshold in order to provide the link for propagation.Additionally or alternatively, the threshold propagation threshold maybe percentage-based such that a percentage of members of an entity, or agroup within that entity, that sent, received, and/or accessed the linkmust be over a certain threshold in order to provide the link forpropagation.

If a determination is made that a propagation threshold for an entity oran entity group has been exceeded, server computing device 130 mayprovide the link for propagation. In some examples, in providing thelink for propagation, server computing device 130 may cause one or moreelectronic communications including a link and/or the content accessibleby the link, to be sent to the members of the entity, or entity group,that the propagation threshold has been determined to be exceeded for.

In other examples, in providing the link for propagation, servercomputing device 130 may mark the link as being available forpropagation to the members of the entity, or an entity group, that thepropagation threshold has been determined to be exceeded for. In someexamples, the marked link may be stored in tenant content repository132, and accessible by one or more content distribution applications.For example, server computing device 120 may perform one or more contentrequest and/or content distribution operations for a first contentdistribution application. Server computing device 122 may perform one ormore content request and/or content distribution operations for a secondcontent distribution application. Server computing device 124 mayperform one or more content request and/or content distributionoperations for a third content distribution application.

One or more of server computing devices 120, 122, and 124 may utilize anAPI, such as content application API 126, which allows them to querytenant content repository 132 for content related to entity members thattheir corresponding applications have content distribution permissionsfor. If a determination is made by a computing device associated withtenant content repository 132, such as server computing device 130, thatone or more links have been marked as exceeding a propagation thresholdfor members of an entity or entity group that a requesting applicationserver has content distribution permissions for, server computing device130 may provide those one or more links and/or content associated withthose links back to a corresponding requesting application server (e.g.,server computing device 120, server computing device 122, and/or servercomputing device 124).

Upon receiving a link and/or content associated with a link that hasbeen marked as exceeding a propagation threshold, a correspondingapplication server (e.g., server computing device 120, server computingdevice 122, and/or server computing device 124) may provide the link,and/or content associated with the link, to the members that thepropagation threshold has been determined to be exceeded for. Forexample, one or more of server computing devices 120, 122, and/or 124may provide an email with the link to one or more computing devices(e.g., member computing devices 135, 138, and 140) associated withmembers that subscribe to their corresponding content distributionapplications for which that link was determined to exceed a propagationthreshold for. In other examples, one or more of server computingdevices 120, 122, and/or 124 may cause the content that is accessible bythe link to be displayed on one or more of member computing devices 120,122, and/or 124 utilizing a user interface associated with each of thecontent distribution applications for which that link was determined toexceed a propagation threshold for.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary environment 200 foridentifying member distribution groups based on member communications.Exemplary environment 200 includes first computing device 202, which isa computing device used by a first member of an entity or entity group.A preview of the first member's profile 204 is shown on the graphicaluser interface of computing device 202. Exemplary environment 200 alsoincludes second computing device 206, which is a computing device usedby a second member of the entity or entity group. A preview of thesecond member's profile 208 is shown on the graphical user interface ofcomputing device 206.

Exemplary environment 200 also includes network 210, by which computingdevices 202 and 206 may communicate with one another, as well as withone or more computing device in communication processing and storagesub-environment 214 (e.g., server computing device 218, server computingdevice 220, and server computing device 222).

The first and second members may communicate with one another via one ormore applications and network 210. For example, the first and secondmembers may exchange one or more emails with one another via an emailapplication, first and second members may communicate with one anothervia an instant messaging application, first and second members maycommunication with one another via audio and video applications, etc. Insome examples, one or more communication signals associated with eachcommunication between the first and second members may be provided, vianetwork 210, to communication processing and storage sub-environment214. In some examples, the one or more communication signals may betransferred to communication processing and storage sub-environment 214contemporaneously with the occurrence of the communication. In otherexamples, the one or more communication signals may be transferred tocommunication processing and storage sub-environment 214 at timedintervals, such as every week, every month, every year, etc.

In some examples, the one or more communication signals may betransferred to a member communication store, such as membercommunication store 216. Member communication store 216 may comprisecommunication signals from a plurality of members associated with one ormore applications. For example, member communication store 216 maycomprise communication signals associated with communications betweenthe first member and the second member, as well as a plurality of otherentity members, which may or may not be shared connections of the firstmember and the second member.

One or more communication signals from the first and second members maybe provided from member communication store 216 to server computingdevice 218, which may perform one or more operations associated withdetermining a communication value between the first and second members,and determining whether the first and second members are associated witha common entity, a common entity group, or a common entity sub-groupbased on the determined communication value for the members.

In other examples, the first and second members may represent entitymembers generally, that may communicate with one or more other entitymembers. For example, the first entity members may communicate, via oneor more applications, with one or more other entity member users and oneor more communication signals from those communications may betransferred, via network 210, to communication processing and storagesub-environment 214. Similarly, the second entity member maycommunicate, via one or more applications, with one or more other entitymembers and one or more communication signals from those communicationsmay be transferred, via network 210, to communication processing andstorage sub-environment 214. It should be understood that there may be aplurality of entity members that communicate with one another, andcorresponding signals for each of those entity members may be similarlytransferred, via network 210, to communication processing and storagesub-environment 214.

If a determination is made by server computing device 218, that acalculated communication value between a first entity member and one ormore additional entity members is above a content propagation thresholdfor propagating a shared link to those members, the shared link may beprovided for propagation to those members.

The set of entity members may be associated with one another in thatthey share a computer network domain, they share an email domain, theyshare a common organization in an application profile, one or morecommunication signals indicate that they have communicated with oneanother to a certain degree and/or frequency, and/or they are otherwiseassociated within at least one application associated with one another(e.g., they have been designated by a system administrator as beingassociated with one another, they have accepted a friend request fromone another, etc.).

FIG. 3 is an exemplary method 300 for recommending content associatedwith a shared link. The method 300 begins at a start operation and flowcontinues to operation 302 where an electronic communication isreceived. The electronic communication may comprise a sent or receivedcommunication to or from one or more members of an entity or entitygroup that is associated with a content propagation service and/or acontent dissemination application that utilizes one or more servicesprovided by a content propagation service. Electronic communicationsthat may be received include communications such as emailcommunications, instant messaging communications, and calendarapplication communications, among others.

From operation 302 flow continues to operation 304, where a receivedelectronic communication is analyzed for the presence of a link, and alink is identified as being included with that electronic communication.

From operation 304 flow continues to operation 306 where a determinationis made as to whether content accessible by the link is relevant and/orallowable content for distribution to one or more members of an entityor entity group. For example, content that is accessible by the link maybe analyzed and the content may be determined to be associated with oneor more categorical content types. One or more categorical content typesthat the link provides access to may be checked against an inclusionlist for one or more members of an entity and or entity group, and adetermination may be made as to whether the content accessible by thelink is allowable for content distribution to one or more of thosemembers.

From operation 306 flow continues to operation 308 where a determinationis made as to whether a link instance exceeds a propagation threshold.In some examples a link instance may comprise the sending of a link to amember of an entity. In other examples, a link instance may comprise thereceiving and/or accessing of a link by a member of an entity. Inadditional examples, a link instance may comprise the sending andreceiving and/or accessing of a link amongst members of an entity. Apropagation threshold may be exceeded when a threshold number of membersof an entity or entity group have sent, received and/or accessed a link.In other examples, a propagation threshold may be exceeded when athreshold percentage of members of an entity or entity group have sent,received and/or accessed a link. According to some examples, if a linkinstance is determined to exceed a propagation threshold, thecorresponding link may be marked as being available for propagation byone or more content dissemination applications and/or or to one or moresubscribing members of one or more content dissemination applications.

From operation 308 flow continues to operation 310 where the link isprovided for propagation. In some examples, providing the link forpropagation may comprise causing one or more electronic communicationsincluding a link that has been determined to meet a propagationthreshold and/or content accessible by the link, to be sent to themembers of the entity, or entity group, that the propagation thresholdhas been determined to be exceeded for.

In other examples, in which the link has been marked as being availablefor propagation by one or more content dissemination applications, themarked link may be stored in a tenant content repository, which may beaccessible by one or more content distribution applications. One or morecontent dissemination applications may query the tenant contentrepository for one or more links and/or content accessible by links thatare marked as being available for propagation. In some examples, an APImay be provided for accessing the tenant content repository andretrieving associated content related to marked links. For example, anemail application or a content aggregation and dissemination applicationmay call into the tenant content repository, and a link to that content,or the content itself, may be provided to the calling application, whichmay then disseminate the link and/or the link content to itsmembers/subscribers that it has been approved to distribute thecorresponding content to.

From operation 310 flow moves to an end operation, and the method 300ends.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary method 400 for recommending content associatedwith a shared link based on identification of member distributiongroups. The method 400 begins at a start operation and flow continues tooperation 402 where an electronic communication is received. Theelectronic communication may comprise a sent or received communicationto or from one or more members of an entity or entity group that isassociated with a content propagation service and/or a contentdissemination application that utilizes one or more services provided bya content propagation service. Electronic communications that may bereceived include communications such as email communications, instantmessaging communications, and calendar application communications, amongothers.

From operation 402 flow continues to operation 404 where a receivedelectronic communication is analyzed for the presence of a link, and alink is identified as being included with the electronic communication.

From operation 404 flow continues to operation 406 where a determinationis made as to whether content accessible by the link is relevant and/orallowable content for distribution to one or more members of an entityor entity group. For example, content that is accessible by the link maybe analyzed and the content may be determined to be associated with oneor more categorical content types. One or more categorical content typesthat the link provides access to may be checked against an inclusionlist for one or more members of an entity and/or entity group, and adetermination may be made as to whether the content that is accessibleby the link is allowable for content distribution to one or more ofthose members.

From operation 406 flow continues to operation 408 where one or moreentity members are identified for which the content accessible by thelink is allowable for distribution to. Those members may be identifiedbased on one or more communication values associated with entity membercommunications. For example, a first entity member may communicate witha plurality of entity members and one or more communication signalsassociated with those communications may be received. The communicationsignals may be analyzed and a determination may be made as to acommunication value to assign to each of the entity members as theircommunications relate to each of the other entity members for whichcommunication signals have been received. In some examples, acommunication value amongst entity members may be assigned based on: thefrequency of communication between entity members, the content ofcommunications between entity members, the length of content ofcommunications between entity members, etc. Upon determining acommunication value for each entity member, one or more sets ofassociated entity members may be identified as a distribution set forpropagating a link, or content associated with a link, to. In someexamples, a set of associated entity members may be identified accordingto a determined communication value between each other entity member, inaddition to a related content type for disseminating to associatedentity members.

From operation 408 flow continues to operation 410 where a determinationis made as to whether a link instance exceeds a propagation threshold.In some examples a link instance may comprise the sending of a link to amember of an entity. In other examples, a link instance may comprise thereceiving and/or accessing of a link by a member of an entity. Inadditional examples, a link instance may comprise the sending andreceiving and/or accessing of a link amongst members of an entity. Apropagation threshold may be exceeded when a threshold number of membersof an entity or entity group have sent, received and/or accessed a link.In other examples, a propagation threshold may be exceeded when athreshold percentage of members of an entity or entity group have sent,received and/or accessed a link. According to some examples, if a linkinstance is determined to exceed a propagation threshold, thecorresponding link may be marked as being available for propagation byone or more content dissemination applications and/or or to one or moresubscribing members of one or more content dissemination applications.

From operation 410 flow continues to operation 412 where the link isprovided for propagation. In some examples, providing the link forpropagation may comprise causing one or more electronic communicationsincluding a link that has been determined to meet a propagationthreshold and/or content accessible by the link, to be sent to themembers of the entity, or entity group, that the propagation thresholdhas been determined to be exceeded for. For example, a set of associatedentity members may be identified for which a propagation threshold hasbeen exceeded based on a determined communication value being exceededfor each of those members in the set.

In other examples in which the link has been marked as being availablefor propagation by one or more content dissemination applications, themarked link may be stored in a tenant content repository, which may beaccessible by one or more content distribution applications. One or morecontent dissemination applications may query the tenant contentrepository for one or more links and/or content accessible by links thatare marked as being available for propagation. In some examples, an APImay be provided for accessing the tenant content repository andretrieving associated content related to marked links. For example, anemail application or a content aggregation and dissemination applicationmay call into the tenant content repository, and a link to that content,or the content itself, may be provided to the calling application, whichmay then disseminate the link and/or link content to itsmembers/subscribers that it has been approved to distribute thecorresponding content to.

From operation 412 flow moves to an end operation, and the method 400ends.

FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate a mobile computing device 500, for example, amobile telephone, a smart phone, wearable computer (such as a smartwatch), a tablet computer, an e-reader, a laptop computer, and the like,with which embodiments of the disclosure may be practiced. In someaspects, the client may be a mobile computing device. With reference toFIG. 5 , one aspect of a mobile computing device 500 for implementingthe aspects is illustrated. In a basic configuration, the mobilecomputing device 500 is a handheld computer having both input elementsand output elements. The mobile computing device 500 typically includesa display 505 and one or more input buttons 510 that allow the user toenter information into the mobile computing device 500. The display 505of the mobile computing device 500 may also function as an input device(e.g., a touch screen display). If included, an optional side inputelement 515 allows further user input. The side input element 515 may bea rotary switch, a button, or any other type of manual input element. Inalternative aspects, mobile computing device 500 may incorporate more orless input elements. For example, the display 505 may not be a touchscreen in some embodiments. In yet another alternative embodiment, themobile computing device 500 is a portable phone system, such as acellular phone. The mobile computing device 500 may also include anoptional keypad 535. Optional keypad 535 may be a physical keypad or a“soft” keypad generated on the touch screen display. In variousembodiments, the output elements include the display 505 for showing agraphical user interface (GUI), a visual indicator 520 (e.g., a lightemitting diode), and/or an audio transducer 525 (e.g., a speaker). Insome aspects, the mobile computing device 500 incorporates a vibrationtransducer for providing the user with tactile feedback. In yet anotheraspect, the mobile computing device 500 incorporates input and/or outputports, such as an audio input (e.g., a microphone jack), an audio output(e.g., a headphone jack), and a video output (e.g., a HDMI port) forsending signals to or receiving signals from an external device.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating the architecture of one aspect ofa mobile computing device. That is, the mobile computing device 600 canincorporate a system (e.g., an architecture) 602 to implement someaspects. In one embodiment, the system 602 is implemented as a “smartphone” capable of running one or more applications (e.g., browser,e-mail, calendaring, contact managers, messaging clients, games, andmedia clients/players). In some aspects, the system 602 is integrated asa computing device, such as an integrated personal digital assistant(PDA) and wireless phone.

One or more application programs 666 may be loaded into the memory 662and run on or in association with the operating system 664. Examples ofthe application programs include phone dialer programs, e-mail programs,personal information management (PIM) programs, word processingprograms, spreadsheet programs, Internet browser programs, messagingprograms, and so forth. The system 602 also includes a non-volatilestorage area 668 within the memory 662. The non-volatile storage area668 may be used to store persistent information that should not be lostif the system 602 is powered down. The application programs 666 may useand store information in the non-volatile storage area 668, such ase-mail or other messages used by an e-mail application, and the like. Asynchronization application (not shown) also resides on the system 602and is programmed to interact with a corresponding synchronizationapplication resident on a host computer to keep the information storedin the non-volatile storage area 668 synchronized with correspondinginformation stored at the host computer. As should be appreciated, otherapplications may be loaded into the memory 662 and run on the mobilecomputing device 600, including the instructions for recommendingcontent associated with a shared link.

The system 602 has a power supply 670, which may be implemented as oneor more batteries. The power supply 670 might further include anexternal power source, such as an AC adapter or a powered docking cradlethat supplements or recharges the batteries.

The system 602 may also include a radio interface layer 672 thatperforms the function of transmitting and receiving radio frequencycommunications. The radio interface layer 672 facilitates wirelessconnectivity between the system 602 and the “outside world,” via acommunications carrier or service provider. Transmissions to and fromthe radio interface layer 672 are conducted under control of theoperating system 664. In other words, communications received by theradio interface layer 672 may be disseminated to the applicationprograms 666 via the operating system 664, and vice versa.

The visual indicator 520 may be used to provide visual notifications,and/or an audio interface 674 may be used for producing audiblenotifications via the audio transducer 525. In the illustratedembodiment, the visual indicator 520 is a light emitting diode (LED) andthe audio transducer 525 is a speaker. These devices may be directlycoupled to the power supply 670 so that when activated, they remain onfor a duration dictated by the notification mechanism even though theprocessor 660 and other components might shut down for conservingbattery power. The LED may be programmed to remain on indefinitely untilthe user takes action to indicate the powered-on status of the device.The audio interface 674 is used to provide audible signals to andreceive audible signals from the user. For example, in addition to beingcoupled to the audio transducer 525, the audio interface 674 may also becoupled to a microphone to receive audible input, such as to facilitatea telephone conversation. In accordance with embodiments of the presentdisclosure, the microphone may also serve as an audio sensor tofacilitate control of notifications, as will be described below. Thesystem 602 may further include a video interface 676 that enables anoperation of an on-board camera 530 to record still images, videostream, and the like.

A mobile computing device 600 implementing the system 602 may haveadditional features or functionality. For example, the mobile computingdevice 600 may also include additional data storage devices (removableand/or non-removable) such as, magnetic disks, optical disks, or tape.Such additional storage is illustrated in FIG. 6 by the non-volatilestorage area 668.

Data/information generated or captured by the mobile computing device600 and stored via the system 602 may be stored locally on the mobilecomputing device 600, as described above, or the data may be stored onany number of storage media that may be accessed by the device via theradio interface layer 672 or via a wired connection between the mobilecomputing device 600 and a separate computing device associated with themobile computing device 600, for example, a server computer in adistributed computing network, such as the Internet. As should beappreciated such data/information may be accessed via the mobilecomputing device 600 via the radio interface layer 672 or via adistributed computing network. Similarly, such data/information may bereadily transferred between computing devices for storage and useaccording to well-known data/information transfer and storage means,including electronic mail and collaborative data/information sharingsystems.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating physical components (e.g.,hardware) of a computing device 700 with which aspects of the disclosuremay be practiced. The computing device components described below mayhave computer executable instructions for recommending contentassociated with a shared link. In a basic configuration, the computingdevice 700 may include at least one processing unit 702 and a systemmemory 704. Depending on the configuration and type of computing device,the system memory 704 may comprise, but is not limited to, volatilestorage (e.g., random access memory), non-volatile storage (e.g.,read-only memory), flash memory, or any combination of such memories.The system memory 804 may include an operating system 705 suitable forrunning one or more recommending content associated with a shared link.The operating system 705, for example, may be suitable for controllingthe operation of the computing device 700. Furthermore, embodiments ofthe disclosure may be practiced in conjunction with a graphics library,other operating systems, or any other application program and is notlimited to any particular application or system. This basicconfiguration is illustrated in FIG. 7 by those components within adashed line 708. The computing device 700 may have additional featuresor functionality. For example, the computing device 700 may also includeadditional data storage devices (removable and/or non-removable) suchas, for example, magnetic disks, optical disks, or tape. Such additionalstorage is illustrated in FIG. 7 by a removable storage device 709 and anon-removable storage device 710.

As stated above, a number of program modules and data files may bestored in the system memory 704. While executing on the processing unit802, the program modules 706 (e.g., content recommendation application720) may perform processes including, but not limited to, the aspects,as described herein. According to examples, the link identificationengine 711 may perform one or more operations associated with analyzinga plurality of signals associated with electronic member communicationsand determining whether electronic communications contain a link.Communication signal analysis engine 713 may perform one or moreoperations associated with identifying one or more members that sent,received, and/or opened an electronic communication, calculating acommunication value between entity members based on theircommunications, and determining what the content of a link provided inelectronic communications relates to. Propagation threshold engine 715may perform one or more operations related to determining whether athreshold has been met for providing a link, or its associated content,for propagation and/or dissemination to one or more entity members.Content filtering module 717 may perform one or more operations relatedto determining whether content associated with a link is allowable fordissemination based on it being associated with an inclusion list,and/or filtering content that may be malicious and/or otherwiseunsuitable for distribution to one or more members of an entity.

Furthermore, embodiments of the disclosure may be practiced in anelectrical circuit comprising discrete electronic elements, packaged orintegrated electronic chips containing logic gates, a circuit utilizinga microprocessor, or on a single chip containing electronic elements ormicroprocessors. For example, embodiments of the disclosure may bepracticed via a system-on-a-chip (SOC) where each or many of thecomponents illustrated in FIG. 7 may be integrated onto a singleintegrated circuit. Such an SOC device may include one or moreprocessing units, graphics units, communications units, systemvirtualization units and various application functionality all of whichare integrated (or “burned”) onto the chip substrate as a singleintegrated circuit. When operating via an SOC, the functionality,described herein, with respect to the capability of client to switchprotocols may be operated via application-specific logic integrated withother components of the computing device 700 on the single integratedcircuit (chip). Embodiments of the disclosure may also be practicedusing other technologies capable of performing logical operations suchas, for example, AND, OR, and NOT, including but not limited tomechanical, optical, fluidic, and quantum technologies. In addition,embodiments of the disclosure may be practiced within a general purposecomputer or in any other circuits or systems.

The computing device 700 may also have one or more input device(s) 712such as a keyboard, a mouse, a pen, a sound or voice input device, atouch or swipe input device, etc. The output device(s) 714 such as adisplay, speakers, a printer, etc. may also be included. Theaforementioned devices are examples and others may be used. Thecomputing device 700 may include one or more communication connections716 allowing communications with other computing devices 750. Examplesof suitable communication connections 716 include, but are not limitedto, radio frequency (RF) transmitter, receiver, and/or transceivercircuitry; universal serial bus (USB), parallel, and/or serial ports.

The term computer readable media as used herein may include computerstorage media. Computer storage media may include volatile andnonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any methodor technology for storage of information, such as computer readableinstructions, data structures, or program modules. The system memory704, the removable storage device 709, and the non-removable storagedevice 710 are all computer storage media examples (e.g., memorystorage). Computer storage media may include RAM, ROM, electricallyerasable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memorytechnology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other opticalstorage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage orother magnetic storage devices, or any other article of manufacturewhich can be used to store information and which can be accessed by thecomputing device 700. Any such computer storage media may be part of thecomputing device 700. Computer storage media does not include a carrierwave or other propagated or modulated data signal.

Communication media may be embodied by computer readable instructions,data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated datasignal, such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism, andincludes any information delivery media. The term “modulated datasignal” may describe a signal that has one or more characteristics setor changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal. Byway of example, and not limitation, communication media may includewired media such as a wired network or direct-wired connection, andwireless media such as acoustic, radio frequency (RF), infrared, andother wireless media.

FIG. 8 illustrates one aspect of the architecture of a system forprocessing data received at a computing system from a remote source,such as a personal/general computer 804, tablet computing device 806, ormobile computing device 808, as described above. Content displayed atserver device 802 may be stored in different communication channels orother storage types. For example, various documents may be stored usinga directory service 822, a web portal 824, a mailbox service 826, aninstant messaging store 828, or a social networking site 830. Theprogram modules 706 may be employed by a client that communicates withserver device 802, and/or the program modules 706 may be employed byserver device 802. The server device 802 may provide data to and from aclient computing device such as a personal/general computer 804, atablet computing device 806 and/or a mobile computing device 808 (e.g.,a smart phone) through a network 815. By way of example, the computersystem described above with respect to FIGS. 5-7 may be embodied in apersonal/general computer 804, a tablet computing device 806 and/or amobile computing device 808 (e.g., a smart phone). Any of theseembodiments of the computing devices may obtain content from the store816, in addition to receiving graphical data useable to be eitherpre-processed at a graphic-originating system, or post-processed at areceiving computing system.

FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary tablet computing device 900 that mayexecute one or more aspects disclosed herein. In addition, the aspectsand functionalities described herein may operate over distributedsystems (e.g., cloud-based computing systems), where applicationfunctionality, memory, data storage and retrieval and various processingfunctions may be operated remotely from each other over a distributedcomputing network, such as the Internet or an intranet. User interfacesand information of various types may be displayed via on-board computingdevice displays or via remote display units associated with one or morecomputing devices. For example user interfaces and information ofvarious types may be displayed and interacted with on a wall surfaceonto which user interfaces and information of various types areprojected. Interaction with the multitude of computing systems withwhich embodiments of the invention may be practiced include, keystrokeentry, touch screen entry, voice or other audio entry, gesture entrywhere an associated computing device is equipped with detection (e.g.,camera) functionality for capturing and interpreting user gestures forcontrolling the functionality of the computing device, and the like.

Aspects of the present disclosure, for example, are described above withreference to block diagrams and/or operational illustrations of methods,systems, and computer program products according to aspects of thedisclosure. The functions/acts noted in the blocks may occur out of theorder as shown in any flowchart. For example, two blocks shown insuccession may in fact be executed substantially concurrently or theblocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending uponthe functionality/acts involved.

As will be understood from the foregoing disclosure, one aspect of thetechnology relates to a method for recommending content, comprising:receiving an electronic communication between a plurality of members ofa common entity; identifying a link to web content in the electroniccommunication; determining a number of instances that the link has beenelectronically shared with members of the common entity; determiningwhether a content propagation threshold has been exceeded based onelectronic sharing of the link amongst members of the common entity; andupon determining that the content propagation threshold has beenexceeded, providing the link for propagation. In some aspects, the linkis provided for propagation upon: receiving a request to propagatecontent of a specific type; and determining that the link providesaccess to content of the specific type. In other aspects, providing thelink for propagation further comprises marking the link as beingavailable for propagation to one or more applications. In additionalaspects, marking the link as being available for propagation to one ormore applications comprises providing an indication of at least onecategorical type of content that the link provides access to. Inadditional aspects, the method may comprise checking the link against acontent type inclusion list and determining whether the link providesaccess to content of a type that is included in the content typeinclusion list. In some aspects, the content type inclusion listcomprises a plurality of content types that are of interest to at leastone organizational unit within the common entity, and wherein the linkis only provided for propagation to an organizational unit within thecommon entity upon determining that the link provides access to acontent type that is included in the content type inclusion list. Instill other aspects, determining whether the content propagationthreshold has been exceeded based on electronic sharing of the linkamongst members of the common entity comprises identifying that the linkhas been shared with at least one of: a threshold number of members ofthe common entity, and a threshold percentage of members of the commonentity. In yet other aspects, determining whether the contentpropagation threshold has been exceeded based on electronic sharing ofthe link amongst members of the common entity comprises identifying thatthe link has been accessed by at least one of: a threshold number ofmembers of the common entity, and a threshold percentage of members ofthe common entity. According to some aspects, determining whether thecontent propagation threshold has been exceed based on electronicsharing of the link amongst members of the common entity comprisesidentifying that the link has been shared by at least one of: athreshold number of members of the common entity, and a thresholdpercentage of members of the common entity. In other aspects, thethreshold number of members of the common entity is based on one or morehierarchical roles within the common entity that the sharing membershave. In additional aspects, providing the link for propagationcomprises: identifying members of the common entity that exceed acommunication threshold value; and marking the link as being availablefor propagation to the members of the common entity that are identifiedas exceeding the communication threshold value.

In another aspect, the technology relates to a system for recommendingcontent, the system comprising: a memory for storing executable programcode; and a processor, functionally coupled to the memory, the processorbeing responsive to computer-executable instructions contained in theprogram code and operative to: receive an electronic communicationbetween a plurality of members of a common entity; identify a link toweb content in the electronic communication; determine a number ofinstances that the link has been electronically shared with members ofthe common entity; determine whether a content propagation threshold hasbeen exceeded based on electronic sharing of the link amongstcommunicatively connected members of the entity; and upon determiningthat the content propagation threshold has been exceeded, providing thelink for propagation. According to some aspects, the processor isfurther responsive to computer-executable instructions contained in theprogram code and operative to identify a set of communicativelyconnected members of the common entity, the identification of the setcomprising calculating a communication value between pairs of members ofthe common entity, wherein calculating the communication value betweenpairs of members of the common entity comprises collecting a pluralityof communication signals shared between each pair. In other aspects, thecontent propagation threshold is exceeded when the link is sharedamongst at least one of: a specific number of communicatively connectedmembers, and a specific percentage of communicatively connected members.In still other aspects, the link is provided for propagation upon:receiving a request to propagate content of a specific type that isdetermined to be of interest to at least one of the communicativelyconnected members; and providing the link for propagation to one or moremembers of the set of communicatively connected members of the commonentity that have been determined to have not received the link.According to some aspects, receiving a request to propagate content of aspecific type that is determined to be of interest to at least one ofthe communicatively connected members comprises checking the linkagainst a content type inclusion list and determining whether the linkprovides access to content of a type that is included in the contenttype inclusion list.

In another aspect, the technology relates to a computer-readable storagedevice comprising executable instructions, that when executed by aprocessor, assist with recommending content, the computer-readablestorage device including instructions executable by the processor for:receiving an electronic communication between a plurality of members ofa common entity; identifying a link to web content in the electroniccommunication; determining a number of instances that the link has beenelectronically shared with the members of the common entity; determiningwhether a content propagation threshold has been exceeded based onelectronic sharing of the link amongst members of the common entity; andupon determining that the content propagation threshold has beenexceeded, providing the link for propagation. In some aspects, providingthe link for propagation further comprises determining whether contentassociated with the link matches a content type inclusion list forcommunicatively connected members of the entity. In additional aspects,the content type inclusion list comprises a plurality of content typesthat are of interest to at least one member of the communicativelyconnected members of the entity, and wherein the link is only providedfor propagation to the at least one member. In other aspects,determining whether the content propagation threshold has been exceedbased on electronic sharing of the link amongst members of the commonentity comprises identifying that the link has been accessed by at leastone of: a threshold number of members of the common entity, and athreshold percentage of members of the common entity.

The description and illustration of one or more aspects provided in thisapplication are not intended to limit or restrict the scope of thedisclosure as claimed in any way. The aspects, examples, and detailsprovided in this application are considered sufficient to conveypossession and enable others to make and use the best mode of claimeddisclosure. The claimed disclosure should not be construed as beinglimited to any aspect, example, or detail provided in this application.Regardless of whether shown and described in combination or separately,the various features (both structural and methodological) are intendedto be selectively included or omitted to produce an embodiment with aparticular set of features. Having been provided with the descriptionand illustration of the present disclosure, one skilled in the art mayenvision variations, modifications, and alternate aspects falling withinthe spirit of the broader aspects of the general inventive conceptembodied in this application that do not depart from the broader scopeof the claimed disclosure.

The various embodiments described above are provided by way ofillustration only and should not be construed to limit the claimsattached hereto. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize variousmodifications and changes that may be made without following the exampleembodiments and applications illustrated and described herein, andwithout departing from the true spirit and scope of the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for distribution of content, comprising:receiving an electronic communication between two or more members of acommon entity, wherein the electronic communication includes a link tocontent; determining a categorical type or a media type of the contentis allowable for distribution to members of the common entity;determining a number of instances the link has been shared with themembers of the common entity has exceeded a propagation threshold; andproviding members of the common entity access to the content.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the electronic communication comprises emailcommunications, instant messaging communications, and calendarapplication communications, and wherein the online content comprises webcontent, social media communications, and news articles.
 3. The methodof claim 1, wherein sharing the link with the members comprises sendingthe link to one of the members, receiving the link by one of themembers, or accessing the link by one of the members.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the propagation threshold comprises a threshold numberof members that have sent, received, or accessed the link.
 5. The methodof claim 1, wherein providing access to the link comprises: determiningthe content accessible by the link is allowable for distribution to themembers of the common entity by checking an inclusion list.
 6. Themethod of claim 1, wherein providing the members of the common entityaccess to the content comprises: receiving a request for content fromone of the members; determining that the requested content is availablefor propagation based on the propagation threshold having been exceeded;and providing the link to the requested content to the requestingmember.
 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising: prior to providingthe link to the requesting member, determining that the requestedcontent is allowable for distribution to the requesting member.
 8. Themethod of claim 6, further comprising: storing the link in a contentrepository; storing the linked online content in the content repository;and providing an email to the requesting member, the email including thelink to the requested content in the content repository, wherein therequested content is caused to be displayed on a computing device of therequesting member.
 9. A system for distribution of content, comprising:a memory for storing executable program code; a content distributionapplication providing member access to the online content; and aprocessor, functionally coupled to the memory, the processor beingresponsive to computer-executable instructions contained in the programcode and operative to: receive an electronic communication between twoor more members of a common entity, wherein the electronic communicationincludes the link to the online content; determining a categorical typeor a media type of the content is allowable for distribution to membersof the common entity; determine a number of instances the link has beenshared with the members of the common entity has exceeded a propagationthreshold; and provide members of the common entity access to thecontent.
 10. The system of claim 9, wherein sharing the link with themembers comprises sending the link to one of the members, receiving thelink by one of the members, or accessing the link by one of the members.11. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further operativeto: determine the content accessible by the link is allowable fordistribution to the members of the common entity by checking aninclusion list.
 12. The system of claim 9, wherein providing the membersof the common entity access to the content comprises the processor beingfurther operative to: receive a request for content from one of themembers; determine that the requested content is available forpropagation based on the propagation threshold having been exceeded; andprovide, with the content distribution application, the link to thecontent to the requesting member.
 13. The system of claim 12, whereinthe processor is further operative to, prior to providing the contentlink to the requesting member, determine that the requested contentaccessible by the link is allowable for distribution to the requestingmember.
 14. The system of claim 9, further comprising a contentrepository, wherein the processor is further operative to: store thelink in the content repository; store the linked content in the contentrepository; and provide an email to the requesting member, the emailincluding the link to the requested content in the content repository,wherein the requested content is caused to be displayed on a computingdevice of the requesting member.
 15. A computer-readable storage devicecomprising executable instructions, that when executed by a processor,assist with distributing content, the computer-readable storage deviceincluding instructions executable by the processor for: receiving anelectronic communication between a plurality of members of a commonentity, wherein the electronic communication includes a link to content;determining a categorical type or a media type of the content isallowable for distribution to members of the common entity; determininga number of instances the link has been shared with the members of thecommon entity has exceeded a propagation threshold; and providingmembers of the common entity access to the content.
 16. The method ofclaim 15, wherein the electronic communication comprises emailcommunications, instant messaging communications, and calendarapplication communications, and wherein the online content comprises webcontent, social media communications, and news articles.
 17. The methodof claim 15, wherein sharing the link with the members comprises sendingthe link to one of the members, receiving the link by one of themembers, or accessing the link by one of the members.
 18. Thecomputer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein providing themembers of the common entity access to the content comprises: receivinga request for content from one of the members; determining that therequested content is available for distribution based on the propagationthreshold having been exceeded; determining that the requested contentis allowed to be distributed to the requesting member; and providing tothe requesting member, with a content distribution application, the linkto the content.
 19. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15,wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor for:storing the link in a content repository; storing the linked content inthe content repository; and providing an email to the requesting member,the email including the link to the requested content in the contentrepository, wherein the requested content is caused to be displayed on acomputing device of the requesting member.
 20. The computer-readablestorage device of claim 15, wherein the instructions are furtherexecutable by the processor for: determining the content accessible bythe link is allowable for distribution to the members of the commonentity by checking an inclusion list.